Pope Francis issued a ringing defense of people and the environment of the Amazon in Peru on Friday, saying big business and “consumerist greed” could not be allowed to destroy a natural habitat vital for the entire planet. AP

Pope Francis issued a ringing defense of people and the environment of the Amazon in Peru on...

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Francis, who has made the environment and climate change a focus of his nearly five-year-old pontificate, made his appeal while visiting a corner of the Amazon where pristine rainforest and biodiversity is being blighted by mining and logging. AP

Francis, who has made the environment and climate change a focus of his nearly five-year-old...

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"Native Amazonian people have probably never been so threatened on their own lands as they are at present," Pope told a crowd of indigenous people from more than 20 groups including the Harakbut, Esse-ejas, Shipibos, Ashaninkas and Juni Kuin. AP

"Native Amazonian people have probably never been so threatened on their own lands as they are at...

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Thousands of representative of the groups from across Peru walked before him, dressed in traditional regional costumes and feather headdresses and speaking in their native languages. AP

Thousands of representative of the groups from across Peru walked before him, dressed in...

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Francis decried the pressure being exerted by big business interests seeking petroleum, gas, lumber, and gold and plundering supplies for other countries without concern for its inhabitants. AP

Francis decried the pressure being exerted by big business interests seeking petroleum, gas,...

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The southeastern region of Peru known as 'Madre de Dios' Spanish for 'Mother of God' has been badly blighted in recent years by unregulated gold mining, with one effect being dangerous levels of mercury in rivers. AP

The southeastern region of Peru known as 'Madre de Dios' Spanish for 'Mother of God' has been...

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Indigenous chiefs in Peru hope the pope’s visit will persuade the government of President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, a former Wall Street banker, to give native communities titles to ancestral land and help preserving it. AP

Indigenous chiefs in Peru hope the pope’s visit will persuade the government of President Pedro...